I felt like a lot of stuff from 1L year was useful. legal research and writing, of course, but I also seemed to have used a lot of constitutional law. It seems to apply to a ton of areas when you're not expecting a con law case to pop up. I found it interesting that details weren't what helped me (you can always do research for that). It was more helpful that my 1L courses gave me a vague idea of where to start my research, or allowed me to not sound like a dumbass talking with an assigning attorney, because I could see what issues were supposed to jump out at me when they gave a little of the factual background.

I'm choosing which firms to bid on for upcoming on-campus interviews, so a little advice on what firm is a "reach" and what is a "safety" would be much appreciated. Ranges of Vault rankings would probably be most helpful. I'm planning on staying in DC.

We don't hear about journals for another couple weeks. I'm betting my GPA puts me at about the top 20-25%, although I only know it's between 16-35% for sure. Also, I switched from PT to FT, do you think that will affect anything? Thanks!

Think again, bud. Rumor is it's tomorrow.

Official word on the "street" (aka the portal):

Attention all participants in the 2008 Journal Competition:

The students who have been selected for membership on one of the law journals at GW Law will be notified by telephone on Saturday, July 12, in the early evening.

As someone who is in the "working poor" class, be aware that the whole process can be expensive. The LSAT, applications, visits, moving, housing for the first month, etc. Try to find the cheapest options for each stage (fee waivers, etc.) or it can really hurt.

Yes, be sure to apply for a fee waiver from LSAC for testing and such, because some schools won't grant (need-based) fee waivers if you didn't apply for a waiver on th testing.

I feel like a complete a$$ after making fun of everyone here, and then getting kicked out of lawschool for poor performance.

What happened? Did taking class along with a job just overwhelm you? I'm just doing one class and working FT this summer, and I know I want to shoot myself. I can't imagine doing this and more for the whole school year.

I concur. Most employers doing GW OCI know the system, so they ask for top 15%, top third and top half - aka, the only things it's possible to figure out. Btw, as far as I know the curve is still at 3.0, maybe a little more, but not over 3.1. If some employer at an outside job fair asks for "top 25%" or something, just explain the system, and I'm pretty sure they won't care if you're top 35% instead of 25%. If you are just trying to figure out whether you're at 4% vs. 6%, go away.

Curve's actually a 3.25

aha! Where'd you find that? I knew they had raised it in the past couple of years, but I couldn't find a number for the life of me.

I concur. Most employers doing GW OCI know the system, so they ask for top 15%, top third and top half - aka, the only things it's possible to figure out. Btw, as far as I know the curve is still at 3.0, maybe a little more, but not over 3.1. If some employer at an outside job fair asks for "top 25%" or something, just explain the system, and I'm pretty sure they won't care if you're top 35% instead of 25%. If you are just trying to figure out whether you're at 4% vs. 6%, go away.